Judy Murray £20m tennis centre project abandoned after planning battle

A project led by Judy Murray to build a £20m tennis centre in Sir Andy Murray’s hometown has been abandoned.

According to the Murray Play Foundation charity, the Park of Keir project was no longer viable due to increasing costs and issues with planning permission.

A statement from the charity said “significant increases in construction, material, energy and labour costs, a lengthy and uncertain planning process, and protracted discussions with governing bodies” were among the factors behind the decision.

It was hoped the centre would serve as part of Sir Andy’s legacy after its completion, by providing communities with greater access to sports.

Judy Murray won an eight-year planning battle to build the complex south of Dunblane at the end of 2021.

But the scheme continued to face opposition from local campaigners due to the site being located on green-belt land.

Sir Andy chose to end his Wimbledon career this year with a doubles appearance alongside his brother Jamie during the 2024 Championships.

The 37-year-old then played the final match of his career when he and Dan Evans were beaten in the quarter-finals of the Olympic men’s doubles in Paris earlier this month.

A Murray Play Foundation spokesperson said: “Judy has been involved in promoting sport and tennis her whole life.

“This not-for-profit project was an opportunity to build a base in Scotland that would have lasted beyond her lifetime and given the next generation greater opportunity to access courts, competition, and coaching.”

The spokesperson said despite the 12 years of work put into the project, met with “indifference and opposition”, the Murray family is proud of their contributions and remain committed to supporting the game in the UK.

“We will now take time to consider what other initiatives might be aligned to the purpose of our charity, which is essentially to provide more people – particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds – with the opportunity to pursue sport, fitness and physical activity,” the spokesperson added.

Scottish Green MSP Mark Ruskell, who gave evidence at a public inquiry involving the project in 2016, said the shelving of the Park of Keir project provided an opportunity to focus on building an “appropriate” legacy for Sir Andy’s success.

“I am proud the local community has stood up and protected Park of Keir,” he said. “This area is the jewel in the crown of our greenbelt that stretches from Dunblane to Bridge of Allan, and it’s important that landscape has been saved.

“At the heart of this project was an exclusive luxury housing development that would have been damaging to the local landscape and would have eroded ancient woodlands and crucial greenbelt land.

“We all want to see a fitting tennis legacy for Andy Murray across Scotland, but building an inaccessible private sports centre, reliant on public funding, in a location that has very little local support was never going to end well.

“I hope that Sport Scotland, the LTA and other parties can re-focus on delivering a Murray legacy in communities across the whole of Scotland. People are crying out for better sports facilities in the communities where they live and they deserve them.”